Gunpla Build Fighters ReVOLT
by MechaCake
Summary: The only thing Zephyr has ever been good at is Gunpla Battle, but he's never been great at it. Kou Araki, his former guildmate introduces Zephyr to an underground community of Gunpla battlers called ReVOLT- but will his life change for the better? (An OC-Focused story about adult Gunpla Fighters that takes a lot from the esports scene.)


I stare off in the distance on the train from Narita Airport to Ueno Station in a daze. As I watch farmland and the outer edges of Tokyo fall behind me, all of my excitement, my confidence, and my passion turns to mush. How the _hell_ did I think that coming to Japan was a good idea?

I take a deep breath and drop out of my trance as the light of dusk meets my eyes. From my carefully packed bag, I pull out a carrying case for the most important object in the world to me: my Gunpla. Over the years, what was a simple kitbash between Gundam Exia and the Advanced Hazel has become my distinct vision of gunpla: the Gundam Tactical Exia Advance. Or, in case I didn't want to use the mandatory Gundam name word salad, just the Tactical Exia.

My Gunpla has become a swiss army knife full of strategic options over years of fine-tuning the concept. It's a perfect fusion of the two kits with my own personal twist: the time I had spent building, designing, fine-tuning and fighting with this beauty had defined it as _mine_, and only mine. It's an excellent close to mid-range fighter with more than a few tricks up its sleeves. Notable features are a further customized GN Shield Booster on it's back, a Sub-Arm unit at its waist that could act as a pair of extra arms for melee or mid-range combat, a distinct sensor attached to the Exia's head for tactical analysis, a GN Sword III as it's main weapon and a variety of small arms hidden on its body. The Tactical Exia sports a distinct midnight blue, gainsboro gray and emerald green color scheme with occasional periwinkle details. The Tac-Exia should an unstoppable force- but in my hands, it's potential dries up with every loss.

My eyes glaze over as the exhaustion hits me again, but it's not long until I hear a robotic voice chirp over the intercom.

"_Ueno Station, now arriving. Ueno Station…"_

My eyes twitch open as I hear the call. I leap out of my seat, backpack in hand, and dash to the entrance. After a few moments the doors open and the comfort of Ueno embraces me. In a few minutes I'll be able to grab a conbini egg sandwich, a capsule hotel and maybe a good fight.

My journey is complete.

* * *

I face the unfamiliar ceiling of a futuristic sleep-coffin as I attempt to doze off. The capsule hotel I chose has an almost Apple Store-like aesthetic that makes everything feels _too clean_. My chin-length dark shaggy hair is still wet from the showers and despite despite being tired as all hell I can't fall asleep.

I think back to my guildmate from the Nexus, the guy who told me to come to go to Japan in the first place: TamashiiZer0. I bring up my phone to text the guy, but my brain is too exhausted to even type my message to him. I think back to our online interactions on Gunpla Battle Universe Online (G-BUN): our tense fights, our conversations about everything from Gunpla Battle to this season's anime to our day to day lives, as well as our occasional collaborations in duo and guild combat. As I finally lose consciousness, I can't help but to wonder what kind of guy Tamashii is in reality…

The panels on my cockpit's UI glow red with system failure messages: my Exia is a mess. I look over to my opponent's machine and it's not in great shape either, but despite the disrepair my gut tells me the odds are growing in his favor. I look around the battlefield of scrap and steel Zeon corpses to find some kind of hope, something to balance the chances for victory. My eyes dart toward a melee weapon on the ground a couple hundred meters away: a Heat Hawk.

My left leg is crippled and my right has limited movement. Thank the Gunpla gods, my thrusters are still completely operational. I can make this work for me, but it's going to require precise and quick movement. I see the modified Bearguy's head move in the direction of the axe and my heart skips a beat-

I _need_ Trans-Am right now or I'm down another loss, so basically I'm screwed. How you even _activate _it is a secret amongst those who have been able to do so. I always thought it was cool how it was something you have to find yourself, that no guide could show you how to execute it, but it's mystical lustor is about to kill me. All I can do is focus on the thought and _wish_ for it to come… and somehow it does.

From my rear camera I can see my GN Drive spark red particles, and in a second my entire machine is covered in a crimson glow. My systems icons vanish leaving only the TRANS-AM text as I exhale in relief. My thrusters jet me toward the weapon and I grasp the Heat Hawk. The Bearguy lurches forward and shoots bullets from it's machine gun arms, but my Exia is already moving. In a single throw, my Heat Hawk spins toward the enemy Bearguy and it cleaves straight through the middle of it's head.

Tamashii's Gunpla brilliantly explodes a moment after the collision. I wipe the sweat off my brow as the virtual referee processes the decision. In the middle of our battlefield, a digital voice shouts "Zero_Chill Wins!" while combat data and battle replay clips fill my screen.

I exit my cockpit and bathe in the glory of my first win against TamashiiZer0. Out of the Bearguy steps out an anthropomorphic red panda with a green parka and an eyepatch. We meet in the machine graveyard, a grin on my face and a smirk on his.

"Good game, kid. So that's, what? 5 losses, one win?"

"Gloat away, nerd. There's more wins to come on my end."

"I knew I shoulda turned off items and stage hazards-"

"This isn't _Smash_, a genuine battlefield is a billion times more interesting than a flat plane: if they use them in tourneys then it's probably legit. You keep on telling me 'no johns', now it's time for you to hold up on your end."

"Alright, alright- congrats on the win, welcome to the guild."

Tamashii the panda hands me a card. A hologram pops out that shows me the memberlist of the guild, the logo and perks of joining.

_Welcome to Glory of the Losers._

_Join: Y / N?_

* * *

In my hunger, I salivate over the display of Lawson fried chicken as the cashier tries his best not to give me an odd look. After a few moments to decide on the flavor I'd like, I point at the curry chicken and toss my yen on the change tray. I receive a super-traditional "have a nice day" from them as I walk out of the convenience store, a bag full of food in hand, and take a swig from my melon soda.

I pull out my phone to look for Gunpla Cafes, but instead I text Tamashii for the fourth time this week.

**Zero_Chill:** Hey I'm in Tokyo, hit me up if you wanna fight.

**Zero_Chill:** Yo dude hmu.

**Zero_Chill:** Hello?

**Zero_Chill:** We need to grab a drink. Text me and I'll drop everything.

**Zero_Chill:** Fine, drinks are on me. Text me, dick.

I can't help but to feel like a needy, clingy whiner. As I plunge into anxiety, I can't help but feel like he and I didn't have as close of a relationship as I thought. Was I just another online rando to him? I thought we were guildmates- maybe even _best_ guildmates- but maybe not. We even exchanged IRL contact info, nobody does that! Despite that, I couldn't shake off the feeling that Tamashii had ghosted me- a normal person would be mad at him, but I honestly I just feel like a garbage person nobody wants to hang out with.

I go back to looking up Gunpla Cafes, even though today is probably going to be the same as yesterday and the day before. Why did I even come to Japan again if I'm not going to get better?

* * *

The sound of beam sabers clashing wakes me up- it's my text notification. My phone is moved toward my face as I read the notification.

**TamashiiZer0:** Yo, sorry

**TamashiiZer0:** Been training in the Hokkaido mountains, don't have good cell there

**TamashiiZer0:** On the train now, meet me here tomorrow around noon

He sends me a link to a Gunpla Cafe in the Yanaka ward- Colony Drop. Of _course_ Tamashii hangs at a cafe called Colony Drop.

**Zero_Chill:** Sounds good, meet me outside the building then? I'm the grungy-looking guy with the VOTOMS shirt

**TamashiiZer0:** Lol k

**TamashiiZer0:** The gaijin with the VOTOMS shirt, got it

My phone plugs back into the capsule hotel's system and I wrap myself in my blanket. Maybe I'm not some clingy garbage person nobody wants to hang out with.

* * *

Colony Drop isn't exactly like the Gunpla Cafes I've been frequenting. It's in a kind of old building, and it's got a different kind of flash than the places I've gone for Gunpla fights. Other Gunpla cafes are sleek, modernistic, and sometimes even classy. In comparison, Colony Drop is more than a bit dingy, clearly a barely-renovated basement arcade from the Showa days, and had a pretty sketchy aura.

A gigantic neon sign covered the second floor of the short brick building displays the name of the cafe with some old-school art. The sign art depicts a Gundam-style O'Neill cylinder colony crashes toward the Earth with a Zaku II and Gundam fighting next to it. You could mistake it for something that had been made in the 1970s or 80s if it wasn't in such a good condition. The whole facade was charmingly kitschy, but also had a bit of an uncomfortable aura to it: both were appropriate for my guildmate.

Despite setting a time to meet outside the cafe, not a soul is in sight. I send a "where are you" text to Tamashii and after a few minutes, he steps out.

It's not at all hard to figure out that this guy's my guildmate, he even wears the same fuzzy olive green parka. What's most important, though, is that he has the right air about him. The Tamashii I know is something of a non-conformist, and his aesthetic choices in a _very _conformist society proves this aspect of his personality. He wears his hair in fuzzy black dreads that only go down about ear-length, and his lower face is covered in a thin field of facial hair. His round mod sunglasses and casual, grungy fashion makes him look like wannabee rockstar- I can't really decide whether the look is stupid or cool.

He smirks as he notices me, just like in the lobbies online.

"Yo, Zero_Chill. You ready for a bashing?"

I try to put on my game face, but it's a lot harder for me to feel confident in reality than it is in cyberspace. I end up giving an awkward smile as I walk toward him.

"I think after our match you're gonna end up regretting the mistakes of your youth, Tamashii."

The Char Aznable reference is stupid clumsy but thankfully Tamashii ignores it.

"Here in meatspace I'm Kou, Kou Araki. How 'bout you?"

"I'm uh- well, my name's Zephyr Marsaile. Nice to meet you."

I'm ultra-tense, but Kou sees right through that. He gives off a friendly laugh as he places a hand on my shoulder.

"No need to be so formal, nerd. C'mon, let's go in."

He leads me down the longer-than-expected staircase to the basement level of the cafe as we make small talk. I take a deep breath to combat the anxiety of being introduced to a new place with new people, as Kou in contrast seems as carefree as humanly possible.

After opening a pair of steel double doors, we enter Colony Drop, and it's unlike any other Gunpla cafe I've been to yet. Despite it being in the middle of the day on a Tuesday, this place is crowded with Gunpla fighters, spectators, and people who just want to grab a gundam-themed snack and chill. The floors are covered in gunpla battle arenas in the center, with a reasonably-sized lounge area in the west section of the room and a bar/cafe to the east.

The interior is about as old-school as the exterior, with posters from tournaments and neon signs covering the brick walls of the cafe. It's rough around the edges aesthetic certainly had an appeal, but before I could grab a drink from the cafe Kou spoke up.

"HEY EVERYBODY!"

Everyone but the people currently battling stares in the direction of Kou and I. As Kou wears a mighty grin and basks in the glow of attention from the crowd, I sweat in my skin.

"This is Zephyr, he's a Gunpla fighter from the US. We're gonna be having a match in a few minutes so come and check it out!"

A majority of the spectators cheer as we make our way to an unoccupied arena. I sweat bullets as a crowd makes their way around the arena and waits for us to begin.

"So," says Kou as he pulls out a GP Base, and a leather pouch for his gunpla. "You've been here about four days, yeah? How many rounds have you got in?"

I do the same as I place my Tactical Exia onto the base and place it on my side of the arena.

"J-Just one."

Kou stares at me in disbelief.

"Just one! You've been here for four days, ya should have a half dozen! Wasn't the point of coming out here to get good? You can't just sit on your ass!"

"I was nervous! You weren't around so I didn't want to go up to randoms with my rusty Japanese-"

"Your Japanese is fine! We're talking pretty well _right now_ you dumbass- Whatever, let's just get the match on."

He places some kind of Rick Dom on his side, and the two of us fasten a high-tech neck sleeve (called an "Actualizer") to sync our minds to the machine. It's not quite full dive VR, but it allows us to experience the battles from a virtual cockpit while still using manual controls. After we both fasten our Actualizers and place our GP Bases, the virtual referee starts up.

"Actualizers Synced, GP Base set- Gundam Tactical Exia Advanced vs. Mobile Fighter King Dom. All ready- START!"

The physical hologram cockpit builds around us as my mind synced into the virtual world. The last thing I saw was the flash of a gigantic crowd around us as the battle begins. I try to kill my nerves as all of reality melts away, with nothing left but the battlefield. I feel the desert heat of our chosen stage against my face, even in the cockpit of my Tactical Exia.

As my cameras turn on and the sphere around me reflects the outside battlefield, I notice Tamashii's machine, something he called the KING-DOM- It certainly looks regal.

The KingDOM seems to be some kind of combination of Dom, Shining Gundam and Musha Gundam. It's designed as if the Dom were part of the mobile suits in G Gundam, with a distinct martial arts focus and a wuxia flair. Curved golden ornaments decorate the KingDOM's head arms, skirt and legs, and it's arms and chest are clearly taken from the Shining Gundam, albeit a bit modified to better work with the Dom's legs and head. On its back are an array of traditional weapons, clearly taken from the Musha Gundam, and at it's waist is Musha's Tanegashima Gun. Altogether, the Dom is imposing: it's got a deep purple, crimson, and gold color scheme and it looks like the suit of a glorious Chinese warrior-king.

We pause, waiting for each other to make the first move as I size the KingDOM up for any kind of surprises. Kou _loves_ having a bag of tricks ready to take his opponents off guard, and I have to be ready for that.

The King DOM takes out a spear from his array of weapons and speeds toward me, before throwing it at my Exia. Altogether it's a pretty shallow throw, I barely even have to move in order for this weapon to miss me, but the first thought on my mind was the purpose of such a puny throw. How is he trying to trick me?

I overthink it before the obvious answer comes hurtling toward me- it's a distraction.

The butt end of the spear explodes into smoke as I curse myself for not thinking of such a simple trick. My sensors gloss over the nearby area for some kind of silhouette, but before I can find it it's too late.

The King hurtles into my eye line with a jet-powered dive kick. My GN Sword III transforms to shooting mode at a mere thought as I get ready to make some cover fire. The Rick Dom hits the ground as I move back a moment too late- his rifle's barrel meets the head of my Exia and Kou makes the shot.

"Bye."

My Exia's speed combined with my reflexes forces the shot to just barely miss. I take a deep breath to get past the shock of a near insta-loss and shoot a spray of bullets toward Kou. My Exia moves in a semi-circular path, always facing the enemy mecha as I ready my next move. The shots barely seem to do much against Kou's gunpla as it speeds forward, using its forearms to block the shots against his chest and head.

We're close to melee range here, and I don't have the time to construct the GN Long Rifle in my kit- so what's the plan? I can't just sit here and _react_, otherwise I won't win. What's my next move to gain an edge- that has to be my thought process here. I need the odds to move in my favor, and just thinking about a win now is foolhardy against an opponent like Kou-

Melee combat situations are where I exceed, but I know that Kou's Dom may be an equal match so I can't just rely on swordplay by itself. There's no time or space for long to mid-range combat so melee is really my only choice unless I want to retreat, and that's a bad idea anyway because then I'll only have time to _react:_ this is my chance to make a move, so I will. I scatter my brain for any ideas and I come back with just the right plan.

The opponent gunpla is handling a pair of Heat Hawks, ready for attack as I deploy my GN Sword. Just before reaching melee range Kou throws one axe and two-hands the other. The throw is competent and takes some maneuvering to ensure it doesn't hit. Just as it misses, the King Dom leaps forward with a horizontal slice. I parry his weapon with mine, the two spark as our machines lock glowing eyes.

I use my sub-arm system to subtly equip a beam saber and attempt to slice through the Dom's leg. The King reacts, using leverage from the axe to push away, dropping the weapon in the process. I grunt in frustration as the saber seemed to only score through the leg armor and not the interior- but in a moment, I notice a few sparks- is this it?

The Rick Dom glowers a few feet away from me as I notice all of it's melee weapons are used- but I'd have to be stupid to think that would be a disadvantage. The now-empty rack of weaponry drops from the King's back, as he enters a hand to hand combat stance.

The stance is somewhat intimidating, but I can't get the jitters about it just after I've regained my cool. As the mecha takes a hardy professional kung fu stance, exhaust comes out of it's vents like a martial artist taking a deep exhale. I draw a GN Dagger in my left hand and ready myself to take the brunt of an attack.

The King stomps forward, and then makes another stomp again. His pace quickens with every step and soon enough he's close enough for a strike- His fist attempts to strike my chest but I deflect it. In quick succession he attempts a knife hand strike with his right but I dodge. With his next strike I aim a stab with my dagger toward his chest and it hits with a shallow stab through his body. I'm a bit surprised- he's usually a little faster than this.

I ready my GN Sword for his next attack- he attacks with his left and I stop to bait the blow before dodging just before it hits. As I do so, I cleanly sever his forearm from the rest of his body and a rush of excitement and relief washes over me.

That relief turns into a pit in my stomach as I realize this win was just bait from him. Just as I celebrate my small victory I notice his right hand glow brighter as light particles coalesce around it- Oh, shit.

The glowing hand moves toward my chest as I process everything that's happening- I need to _move the hell out of here_. I attempt a dodge but it's too late- it's just changed where the damage is going.

My right shoulder gets hit by his glowing knife hand and the energy around the strike explodes on impact.

"_**Shining Spear!"**_

The attack crushes the Exia's shoulder armor and leaves the arm completely exposed. I dash a few meters away from the fearsome King and attempt to operate the attacked arm but it's gone limp. With the arm goes any long-range combat options or any defensive options involving my shield- I guess it's time for _that._

"Exia, activate Shield Booster Cross System."

My cockpit beeps in acceptance as the two shields at my back split in half. I've been working on the Shield Booster Cross for _months_, trying to figure out how to make it work on a mechanical and programming level and as of my last test things went well. Pre-separated parts of the interior of the shield fly out and surround me as my custom GN Shield bits. The white exterior of the shields move into place on my booster and form an X at my back.

I need this win more than anything today- I need to prove to myself I'm a good player, that I deserved to go to Japan and another loss isn't going to make me feel that way. I need to find a place in this community, and becoming a worthy rival to Kou is the chance to do this. More than that, I need to stop feeling like a failure, like someone worthless- I need to funnel my passion and strength into the next attack, or I'm _done._

"TRANS-AM!"

My Gunpla runs crimson as I rush forward toward my opponent. Kou seems to have another trick up his sleeve as he begins to do a handstand, but as he does the fingers on his only hand magnetically fuse together to create a much more balanced foot and his feet separate into hands. As I reach his range the King Dom lets off a flurry of intense blows as fast as a machine gun- Kou may as well be shouting ORA ORA ORA.

Each blow is met by my fast-moving shield bit as I analyze for an opening. Finally, after a few moments the blows slow down and I finally see my opportunity. I speed into an arc just around the Dom and my blade follows the same path, slashing straight through the King Dom's stomach.

The unit explodes behind me as I grin in victory: _I DID IT._

"Zero_Chill Wins!"

I hear the virtual referee make his decision just as I'm released from the simulation. I hear a cacophony of cheers as I awaken from the battle with the crowd still surrounding us. I look up and see Kou, with a hand extended. I take it and he raises my arm in victory.

"We have a winner!"

The surrounding spectators cheer even louder this time and I'm awash in my victory. My face can't hide my happiness and this whole experience is like an injection of confidence for me. For the first time since I left the United States, I feel _good enough_.

After the crowd quiets a bit Kou drops my arm and reaches in his pocket to produce some kind of card. He hands it to me and when I take it a holographic display the same as the day I first beat him comes up.

_Welcome to ReVOLT!  
Join?_

_Y / N_

Author's Notes

So, that's the first chapter of ReVOLT, my OC-focused Gundam Build Fighters fanfic. I was inspired to write this due to the general lack of older focus characters like Fellini or Ramba in newer Build Fighter and Build Diver shows and really wanted to focus on an aspect of the Gunpla battle scene the anime would never touch. This is mostly a story about young adults and older teenagers trying to make a living out of gunpla battling, and it's definitely going to be a bit different tonally from the main series, but I hope you enjoy it! I was also inspired by stories like _Don't Forget our Esports Dream! _and _Kaiji _to focus on down-on-their-luck adults trying to make it big.

By the by, if you have any custom Gunpla ideas you want added the story feel free to add them via the comments! By far the hardest aspect of writing this was making interesting yet flawed Gunpla.

Next chapter is definitely going to be more character-focused as I build out the cast of ReVOLT. See you then!

**UPDATE 10.27.2020: **Edited the chapter to add linebreaks and fix some sentence structure. Second chapter has been in the works for awhile but I've been busy with other projects and Life Stuff- hopefully it'll come soon! Trying to get it done by the end of this week.


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